Garment pocket



June 1961 M. REED 2,988,750

GARMENT POCKET Filed April 14, 1958 INVENTOR. Les/[e M. Reed.

A 'T'TORNE Y6 United States Patent Filed Apr. 14, 1958, Ser. No. 728,283 3 Claims. c1. 2-254 This invention relates to an improved pocket construction for various types of garments and particularly for use on shirts and other items of wearing apparel.

The principal objects of the present invention are to provide an improved pocket construction fashioned to have an internal article guard positioned to prevent articles from falling out when the mouth of the pocket is disposed in a generally downward direction or at such variants from an upright position wherein articles may tend to pass outward through the opening thereof; to provide such a pocket wherein the structure is a patch pocket with a flap and folds arranged to shape the flap whereby it is normally positioned to close the opening of the pocket; to provide such a pocket structure which can be made from a single piece of relatively thin, light and flexible cloth or other sheet material; and to provide a safety pocket construction that is economical to manufacture and easily incorporated in or as a part of a garment.

In accomplishing these and other objects of the present invention, I have provided improved details of structure, the preferred form of which is illustrated in the accompanying drawings, wherein:

a FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing a fragmentary portion of a shirt body with a pocket embodying the present invention secured thereto with a portion of the pocket broken away to disclose the interior thereof.

. FIG. 2 is a plan view of the blank from which the pocket is constructed.

FIG. 3 is a perspective view of the pocket in partially folded and stitched condition.

FIG. 4 is a perspective view of the pocket in completed form for application to a garment.

FIG. Sis a vertical sectional view through the pocket and garment portion taken on the line 55, FIG. 1.

FIG. 6 is a horizontal sectional view through the pocket and garment taken on the line 6-6, FIG. 1.

Referring more in detail to the drawings:

1 designates a garment such as a shirt or the like having a pocket 2 thereon, said pocket being in the form of what is ordinarily referred to as a patch pocket. The pocket 2 is formed from a blank 3 of a single piece of cloth cut and marked to provide a pocket body portion 4 and a flap 5 with intermediate portions 6, 7, 8 and 9, defined by fold lines 10, 11, 12, 13 and 14, as illustrated in FIG. 2, that form a stiffening hem in the pocket.

The pocket body 4 of the blank has substantially par- Patented June 20, 1961 ice from the edges 28. The flap 5 has side margins foldable inwardly on fold lines 31 and end margins foldable inwardly on fold lines 32 and an end margin for the central portion foldable inwardly on the line 33 to provide fin ished fold edges 34, 35 and 36 respectively. Diagonal tucks 37 extend from the notches 29 and a vertical tuck 38 extends from the edge midway between the notches 29, said tucks being defined on the blank 3 by groups of fold lines 39 and 40 respectively. The end margins are folded on the lines32 and 33 and secured to the body of the flap 5 by means of a line of stitching 41. Then the tucks 37 and 38 are folded on the sets of lines 39 and 40 respectively and secured by lines of stitching 42 and 43 respectively. Then the blank is folded on the line 13 whereby the intermediate portion 8 overlies the intermediate portion 9 and said intermediate portions are conallel side edges 15 and 16 and inclined bottom edges 17 and 18. The marginal portions at the edges 15, 16, 17 and 18, are foldable on lines 19 to underlie the body portion 4 to form a folded edge 20 at the sides and bottom of the pocket when same is secured to the shirt body 1 by means of lines of stitching 21 that extend around said bottom and sides in a substantially U-shapef The blank 3 has notches 22 at the upper ends of the edges 15 and 16 to designate the position of the fold line 10 which forms the upperedge of the pocket at the mouth or top opening 23 thereof. There are notches 24 and 25 on opposite sides of the blank 3 to designate other fold lines.

Above the fold line 14, the flap portion 5 has diverging sides 26 and 27, inclined upwardly and outwardly relative to the sides 15 and 16 respectively, said fiap terminating in end edges 28 with the central portion of the flap adjacent the end edges 28 having spaced notches 29 defining a central portion with an edge 30 spaced inwardly uected by a line of stitching 44 between lines 11 and 12 and then the intermediate portions are folded or rolled on the lines 12 and 14 and the portions connected by a line of stitching 45 slightly above line 13. Then the folded portions are turned down on the fold line 11 whereby the upper portion of the flap 5 is adjacent the body portion 4 (P16. 3). Then the margins of the pocket body are folded inwardly on the fold lines 19' and the sides of the flap 5 are folded inwardly on the fold lines 32 and the flap folded on the fold line 10 to overlie the pocket body with the folded sides of the flap overlying the folded margins of the pocket body as illustrated in FIG. 4. The pocket member, as then constructed, is in the form of a patch pocket and is placed on the body of the garment in the desired position whereby the pocket body and garment form opposed side walls of the pocket. The sides and bottom of the pocket are secured to the garment by the spaced rows of stitching 21 which also secure the side margins of the flaps to the body of the garment providing connected sides and bottom of the pocket with a free top portion. Due to the tucks 37 and 38, and the length of the end of the closure flap 5, said end tends to remain in engagement with the body of the garment at all times as illustrated in FIG. 5, the tucks providing thickened portions and stiffness tending to hold the flap in said position. It will be noted that the length of the end of the flap 5 is longer than the upper edge 10 or width of the pocket, and that due to the layers of the pocket material at said upper edge of the pocket, there is provided thickened portions for stiffening same that tends to retain the upper edge of the pocket straight.

In use, articles 46 may be easily inserted through the mouth or open upper end 23 of the safety pocket, and they will pass between the flap 5 and the body of the garment into the portion of the pocket below the flap. In the event the pocket is inverted accidentally or otherwise, the article 46 is prevented from passing out of the pocket by the flap 5 and instead is directed into the recess 47 between the body portion 4 of the pocket and the flap 5. The stiffness of the tucks 37 and 38 and the tendency of the end of the flap to remain in engagement with the body of the garment prevents the articles from passing between the flap and the body of the garment. On the other hand, when it is desired to remove articles from the pocket, this can readily be accomplished by inserting the fingers in the opening 23 and moving the end of the flap from the body of the garment (FIG. 6) sufiiciently to permit the article to be removed from the pocket, and as soon as the fingers and article are removed, the flap springs back into engagement with the body of the garment to automatically close the pocket.

While the structure illustrated and described is particularly adapted for shirt pockets, it is to be understood it can be used in various ways as may be desired, as well as on various types of garments.

It is to be understood that while I have illustrated and described one form of my invention, it is not to be limited to the specific form or arrangement of parts herein described and shown except insofar as such limitations are included in the claims.

What I claim and desire to secure by Letters Patent is:

1. In combination with a garment, a safety pocket including a body member having inturned side and bottom edges, lines of stitching connecting the sides and bottom portion of the body member to the garment, said body member having a top edge free of the garment to provide a mouth to the pocket for insertion and removal of articles, said pocket member having a plurality of overlying folds intermediate its ends to provide a multiple thickness at the top edge of the pocket body, a pocket closure flap between the body member and the garment with the top edge of the flap connected to the top of the body member, said closure flap having side edges diverging from said folded portion of the pocket, said diverging side edges of the closure flap being between the sides of the pocket body and the garment and connected thereto, said closure flap having a bottom edge free of the body member and garment and longer than the width of the pocket, said bottom edge being folded and sewed to provide a hem, and tucks sewed in the flap and spaced from the sides of the pocket body, said tucks being spaced apart and extending in diverging relation substantially from the bottom edge to the top edge of the flap whereby said tucks provide thickened portions for stiffening the flap and normally holding the bottom edge of the flap toward the garment in pocket closing position.

2. In combination with a garment, a safety pocket including a body member having inturned side and bottom edges, lines of stitching connecting the sides and bottom portion of the body member to the garment, said body member having a top edge free "of the garment to provide a mouth to the pocket for insertion and removal of articles, said pocket member having a plurality of overlying folds intermediate its ends to provide at least three thicknesses at the top edge of the pocket body, a pocket closure flap integral with and extending from the folded portions of the pocket between the body member and the garment, said closure flap having side edges diverging from said folded portion of the pocket, said diverging side edges of the closure flap being between the sides of the Pocket body and the garment and connected thereto, said closure flap having a bottom edge with a central portion recessed, said bottom edge being longer than the width of the pocket and being folded and sewed to provide a hem, a tuck sewed in the flap and extending substantially from the mid-point of the bottom edge thereof to the top edge, and spaced tucks diverging upwardly from the ends of the recessed portion in the bottom edge of the flap substantially to the top edge thereof whereby said tucks provide thickened portions for stilfening the flap and normally holding the bottom edge of the fiap toward the garment in pocket closing position.

3. In combination with a garment, a patch pocket member having its sides and bottom sewn to the garment with its top edge free to provide a mouth to the pocket for insertion and removal of articles, a pocket closure fiap between the upper portion of the pocket patch member and the garment having its sides and top edges connected with the sides and top of the pocket patch member and with its bottom edge free of the patch member and garment and with said bottom edge longer than the Width of the pocket, folded portions at the upper edge of the pocket member providing a hem of at least three thicknesses for stiffening said upper edge, and tucks sewn in the flap in spaced relation to the sides thereof, said tucks being spaced apart and extending in diverging relation substantially from the bottom edge to the top edge of the flap whereby said tucks provide thickened portions for stifiening the flap and normally holding the bottom edge of the flap toward the garment in pocket closing position.

References Cited in the tile of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 679,866 Shields Aug. 6, 1901 1,256,787 Grant Feb. 19, 1918 1,878,324 Reitz Sept. 20, 1932 2,544,750 DAlcsio Mar. 13, 1951 2,840,824 Horner July 1, 1958 FOREIGN PATENTS 5,360 Great Britain Mar. 4, 1912 47,792 France Apr. 6, 1937 

